The Lakes Area Music Festival — a nonprofit organization that has brought world-renowned orchestra, opera, and chamber music performances to central Minnesota each July and August since 2009 — has received a $2 million endowment to help fund future seasons.
Scott Lykins, the festival’s artistic and executive director, announced the gift following the festival’s Sunday-afternoon presentation of Bizet’s Carmen at the Gichi-ziibi Center for the Arts in Brainerd. Dave and Marlys Theis of Plymouth, Minnesota, made the donation establishing the new endowment. It is the largest gift the Lakes Area Music Festival has ever received.
“A gift of this size is incredibly meaningful for an organization like ours,” Lykins told the audience in Brainerd on Sunday evening. “Our board and artistic teams were already in discussions for innovative programming in the upcoming seasons and to pave the way to a sustainable future. This generous gift from Dave and Marlys fuels both of these — turning what might have been long-term dreams into a reality.”
Lykins added he was struck by “knowing that someone in our community would see the value of our mission and the impact in the community and be moved to support it like this.”
“We are very pleased to support the Lakes Area Music Festival and make a difference with this donation,” benefactors Dave and Marlys Thies said in a statement. “We want this to be a catalyst and hope it leads to more people discovering the talent that these people have. It truly is something to behold.”
The gift comes near the end of a season the Lakes Area Music Festival built around the theme of “passion.” “It lies at the heart of everything we do,” Lykins said. “Passion fuels great artistry, but it also connects us — to one another, to our community, and to the stories that shape us.”
There are three events remaining in this year’s program: Wednesday evening, a Chamber Orchestra will perform works by Franz Joseph Haydn, Richard Strauss and Francis Poulenc. The Symphony Finale is set for Saturday, Aug. 22, and Sunday, Aug. 23, featuring works by Carlos Simon, Claude Debussy and Igor Stravinsky. Music Director Christian Reif, who brings his family from Germany to central Minnesota for the summer, will conduct all three performances.
This activity is made possible in part by the Minnesota Legacy Amendment‘s Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund.
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